The Corner Grocery Store

How can having a corner grocery store make a difference in someone's life? Well, having both sides of" my family" having a small "family " business made the difference in all of our lives. It was 1953 when , I can remember my dad's family grocery store ,"Gollie's". I was just a little girl going to buy candy with my nickel. Grandpa Thomas always gave me 10 cents worth of the candy . Was that "frugal " of Grandpa? Yes ,but it taught me that if you pay" some ", you will get much more back.You needed to give a little of what you have and you will get more in return. Being the oldest granddaughter living in Superior,Wis. , Grandma Anna gave me the store's scoop for "scooping " out candy and the box for selling thread. Thread was sold individually from "a special wooden box". Those "family treasures" are more precious then "gold" because I have the memories of using them with my grandparents.When I was a teenager , my mom's family bought a corner grocery store and it too was a "family business", which gave us a chance to"work".My mom's sister, Ciocia Genia and younger brother owned the store. My mom , Helena was the "manager" and my Uncle Jimmy was the "butcher" . They were all able to save enough money to bring my aunt from Poland for a visit. My Polish aunt had never met her family and it was the first time in America to see her brothers and sisters . So, that corner grocery store" made a difference " in all of "our family's lives". I can remember the smiles that both my dad's family and mom's family gave to the customers because it was their "livelihood" and the "family " business, especially my mom's smile when she sold her "special Easter cupcakes". Those corner grocery stores " made a difference" in the lives of our family!

 By Susan